His, Hers and...Theirs?. Judy Duarte

      “I know, but I wasn’t sure what you had in your pantry. And since I’m determined to make dinner tonight, I wanted to make sure I had all the ingredients. I hope you like Mexican food.”

      He brightened like a kid who’d been offered an early birthday present. “I love it.”

      As he reached into the trunk to lift the box, she noticed the edge of a bandage on his forearm.

      “What happened?” she asked, pointing to the gauze.

      “This?” He glanced down at his arm, then shrugged it off. “I got snagged by a nail in the barn. It’s no big deal.”

      “Are you sure?” It must have been bad enough to warrant first aid.

      He gave her a don’t-worry-about-it grin, then lifted the box of groceries and closed her trunk.

      Eva grabbed her purse from the front passenger seat of the car, pushed the lock button on the remote, then followed him to the porch, where two potted geraniums flanked the steps.

      The wood slats creaked all the way to the front door, and they entered the house with the kids on their heels.

      “I appreciate your help,” Dan said, “especially today. I’ve got a lot of work to do and can’t spare Manuel to help me. He’s got to stick close to the barn this morning.”

      “Yeah,” Kevin said. “That’s because Sugar is going to have a baby, just like Jill.”

      “Not just like Jill,” his sister corrected. “Sugar’s baby is going to be a horse, and Jill had puppies.”

      Kevin nodded. “We’ll take you to see them. Come on.”

      “Just a minute,” Eva said. “I need to put away the perishable items in the fridge first.”

      “What’s that?” Kevin asked.

      Before she could explain to the kids, Dan excused himself and headed through the service porch and out the back door.

      Eva couldn’t help but watch him go, with that long, lean cowboy swagger of his. Nor could she help missing his presence. He might think she was a pro at dealing with children, but she knew better.

      “Can I help you cook lunch?” Kaylee asked.

      “Me, too?” Kevin chimed in.

      Back to work, she thought, tearing her gaze away from the handsome cowboy and offering the children a smile. “Sure, you can help.”

      Kaylee pulled a chair from the table and dragged it to the counter. “What are we going to do first?”

      “I’ll tell you what,” Eva said. “As soon as I get the beans going, we can make chocolate chip cookies for dessert. How would you like that?”

      Kevin let out a little whoop for joy, and Kaylee seconded his opinion with a clap of her hands.

      After she’d settled into the kitchen, Eva opened the pantry to see if the men did, indeed, have the staples she’d need—and they didn’t.